Life is Strange: Metamorphosis
by rowanred81
Summary: Post-game. Takes place in January of 2014, the premise being Max returning to Blackwell after a three-month absence. In the wake of the Prescott family's downfall and the controversies at school mounting, Blackwell closed under pressure from both parents and Arcadia Bay's citizens. Individual installments on Tumblr, five parts condensed into one here for every 10 I post there.
1. Chapter 1

**_Chapter 1_**

 ** _"Young God" by Halsey_**

Max hadn't expected to come back to Blackwell Academy after everything that'd happened last October - the school had locked everyone's grades in, a move that had caused some controversy, and the re-opening of the dorms felt like picking at an old wound. _I wonder who will even come back_ , Max thought as she pulled into the school's parking lot. A part of the settlement money had gone to Max's own transportation, an old Jeep Wrangler. The heat only half-worked but Max's parka more than finished the job of keeping her warm. Hair stuffed into a beanie, only her face visible from all the clothes, Max released the safety belt and slid out to stand in the empty parking lot.

Stretching, Max felt her joints pop and made a pleased humming noise at how good it felt after a four-hour drive to be standing on her feet; walking around to the back, Max grabbed her duffel bag and guitar case. Slinging the soft case across her shoulder, in tandem with her camera bag, Max pulled out the carrying handle for her duffel and wheeled it along behind her once she had locked her car up. _Is this… Do I even_ want _to fucking be here? Wowser, I've hardly kept in touch with anyone. Not that they wouldn't understand._

 _ **A once-friendly face turned cold. Gun shots, the sound of a camera clicking, her own manic laughter as Mark Jefferson was locked away in the bunker with Sean Prescott's family barn set aflame by her hand. The crashing of thunder and waves as she willed the storm to stop, reversing time around it until it ceased to be. Days in a hospital, recovering from the blood loss and migraines that had rendered her unconscious…**_

"The fight with Chloe," Max mumbled to herself, remembering how happy the bluenette had been when Max had woken up only to fall to pieces when Max bitterly recounted _every traumatic event_ she had endured to save the girl who had been her childhood best friend.

" _Max, I s-swear if I had only known that-"_

" _Just stop, Chloe. Please stop," Max said, looking away from the watery blue eyes that had won her over so many times that week, "Honestly, I don't think you wanted to know. I think you were happy in your ignorance, your 'SuperMax' just saving your ass over and over."_

 _The coldness in Max's voice gave both girls chills._

" _Max, that is hella unfair!" Chloe snapped back, getting up from her chair at Max's bedside so suddenly that the chair fell over. "You could have told me all of this at any time! I don't need your fucking protect-"_

" _Of course you do," Max said with an indignant snort, "You think my powers started because of you? Fine. That means they started because your ass needed saving and I was there to do it."_

"… _Fuck you, Max…," Chloe managed to choke out, trying to get the angry, bedridden girl to look at her. When Max just continued to look toward the window, Chloe flipped her off and made for the door._

" _S'right. Just fucking run. Avoiding shit is what you're best at, right? Never mind me, the girl who… the girl who…," Max shook her head and sighed, pulling a pillow to her face to muffle a scream. Hearing the hospital room's door slam shut, Max screamed again and cried. "Just fucking go away. Everybody… I just want to be left alone…"_

Now, months later, Max Caulfield returned to Blackwell Academy a changed person in mind _and_ body. Thinner from a lack of appetite, the dark circles under her eyes were covered up with black eyeliner and mascara to coincide with her darker mood. Where blue jeans and hoodies had been her previous daily armor, black jeans and a leather jacket seemed more suited for the Max Caulfield entering 2014. Topping off her new look with steel-toe boots that went up to her calf and a black beanie with a white skull emblazoned on the front, Max stuck her tongue out a bit to play with her new lip ring. A septum piercing, lip ring, and an eyebrow piercing were the immediately visible displays of Max's new interest in body art. Under the layers of clothing resided the most blatant display; her double sleeves.

One arm inked up to resemble a tornado, symbols of what felt to Max like her life caught up in its spinning vortex, the other arm had been designed to be a sequence of Polaroids which slowly developed to end with a blue morpho on the back of her hand. Black razor wire and vines interwoven between the sequential photos tattooed onto her left arm, Max remembered how much it had hurt to get so much done in so relatively short an amount of time. _Another splurge of the settlement money to buy my silence. You can take my words, have my parents surrender them to you, Prescotts, but you can't have my body. Not again, and not_ ever. _.._

"Max?" a familiar voice asked from close behind her and Max jumped, spinning around with fist raised only to drop it just as quickly when she spotted a flinching Kate Marsh. "I'm sorry. I didn't…I didn't think of how startling you might be a bad thing now."

"S'okay, Kate," Max said, smiling apologetically as she scratched at her beanie, "C'mere."

Max pulled Kate into a tight hug and kissed her friend on the cheek as she wiped the few tears Kate's eyes had sprung. _Dog, I missed you. I'll always miss you when you're not around, Kate. No more rooftops, no more misery for this precious girl._ Stepping back, Max appraised her friend and nodded.

"You let your hair down,' Max said, running a gloved hand through Kate's long blonde hair, "It's pretty."

"Th-Thanks," Kate said, her face reddening, "Are we the only ones here so far?"

"I think so. C'mon, let's get inside. I'm freezing my ass off out here," Max said with a smirk, grabbing her duffel's handle as Kate moved to walk alongside her.

—

Max's dorm room was _almost_ exactly as she had left it in October, the police tape torn away from her door save the small bits of yellow on the frame. Looking over her shoulder to see Kate already heading inside, Max thought it was morbidly funny that the two people hurt in Blackwell were the first to return. _I'm always a slut for teh drama, amirite? Oh fuck, I think I actually might be more of a magnet. Shit._ Max unlocked her door and was about to enter when she heard a soft-spoken voice call out to her from down the hallway. Looking in the voice's direction, Max's eyes narrowed at the sight of Chloe Price standing in the hallway by herself, hands in her pockets as she awkwardly fidgeted where she stood. Seeing Chloe look up at her with her head down, Max felt the tension between them like they were inches apart and not feet. _Not one call, not one email. You didn't even text me. I was in a dark place, Chloe, and I was mad. I still am, but not at you. Not anymore, anyway._

"You gonna stand there like a spaz or are you going to get your lanky ass over here and hug me, Price?" Max asked, snickering when she saw Chloe's eyes widen in surprise. "Chloe, just…just come here."

Chloe ran down the hall and lifted Max up in a hug, holding onto the brunette so tightly that Max found it difficult to breathe. _Holy shit,_ Max thought as she tapped at Chloe's shoulders, _You totally missed me like fucking crazy._

"C-Chloe… Chloe, I c-can't breathe…," Max said between gasps, her voice raspy until she took in a deep breath when Chloe finally let her go.

"I came here in the hope of seeing you. Joyce… _Mom_ had called your dad up to find out whether or not you were coming back," Chloe admitted, hands back in her pockets with a sheepish look on her face. The look only lasted a moment, however, when Chloe spotted the piercings on Max's face, "Holy fuck, Max! You did all that without me! Amazeballs…"

"Oh, these?" Max gestured at her piercings and winked. "These are nothing. Come inside and you'll see what I was _really_ up to in Seattle."

* * *

"Wow, they left everything exactly as it was," Max said aloud, more to herself than Chloe as the bluenette closed the door behind them, "Even Nathan's shitty paint job on my photo wall is untouched. You'd think they might want to remove that…"

Max unslung her camera bag and guitar case before plopping down on the dorm room bed. The winter light from outside filtering through the partly-closed blinds was the only illumination in the room. Seeing Chloe make for the light switch, Max tugged at the other girl's jacket sleeve and pulled Chloe onto the bed next to her.

"Help me out of this?" Max gestured at herself, the parka in particular, "I bundled myself up so much I'm one step away from 'I can't keep my arms down!'"

"Nice A Christmas Story reference," Chloe mused with a smirk as she popped the wrist snaps open and unfastened the snapped-up collar, "Goddamn, Max. Is this a coat or an eco-dome?"

Snickering, Max watched with a mixture of amusement and mild impatience as Chloe slowly unsnapped and unzipped the multi-layered coat. No, by all means, take your sweet-ass time, Max thought as Chloe glanced up and winked.

"I think you like messing with me way more than you should," Max teased, jabbing Chloe in the side with an index finger. Watching Chloe recoil from the touch, a Cheshire grin came across the brunette's face. "Oh my fucking Dog…"

"Max…," Chloe's warning tone did nothing to dissuade Max from poking Chloe in the side again, "Max, fucking quit it!"

"Holy… You're still ticklish!" Max cried out gleefully, laughing until Chloe began to zip her back up, "No! No, Chloe, I won't poke you again! C'mon, be a 'gal pal' and help me outta this damn thing!"

"Did you seriously just say 'gal pal'?"

"…Only as a joke…"

"I should hella straight-jacket you into this damn thing," Chloe said, her face now stretched into a wide, mischievous grin, "You're lucky I'm so damn nice."

"No comment," Max said with a huff as Chloe paused before resuming her freeing Max from the heavy coat.

"There, all done… Max? Max, what the…?" Chloe stammered out, Max looking down to see the black tank-top revealing her impressive series of tattoos, "Jesus Hella Christ, Caulfield! What the fuck have you been up to?"

Max's shrug did nothing to alleviate Chloe's demanding look and the brunette let out a sigh before shrugging herself free of the parka, her childhood best friend's eyes widening as tattooed shoulders gave way to entirely-tattooed arms. And to think I didn't have my Polaroid on me to capture your moment of utter fucking shock, Chloe. Bad Max, bad! Sliding out of the bed, Max walked over to her camera bag and plucked out a pack of cigarettes, lighter, and her camera. Moving over to the window, Max pushed it open and sat on the window sill, bracing herself with a booted foot on one end with herself firmly planted on the other. Lighting up, Max extended the pack in Chloe's direction, the bluenette getting up from Max's bed to join her.

"Tattoos and smokes? Who are you and what have you done with Max Caulfield? Are you a pod person? Is this the 5th Wave?" Chloe asked, taking a cigarette and lighting up with her own lighter.

"5th Wave? Pod person?" Max asked with a snort, "And you call me a nerd, never mind poor Warren."

"You bring up Waldo now? Why?" Chloe asked, Max catching the irritation in the taller girl's voice.

"Chill, Che. I only brought him up because he's waving at me from the quad," Max gestured with her cigarette-wielding hand to the dorm courtyard and Chloe peeked out from the open window to see Warren smiling up at Max. When Max saw Warren's cheerful disposition lessen at Chloe's appearance, Max slid off the window sill and into her room. Playfully, Max pushed Chloe back in with a hand to the bluenette's face, "Wowser, you just can't stand anyone but you hanging out with me, huh?"

"…I just don't think he's good enough for you," Chloe countered, her face suddenly very serious, "Max… Shit, can we talk? Like, hella serious talk?"

"I figured that's why you were here so damn fast," Max nodded, snuffing her cigarette out into an ashtray she'd brought along from home, "Fine. Talk."

"Look, I'm just gonna say it and I'm only going to say it once," Chloe took a deep breath before continuing, "I'm sorry. You were right, okay? Part of me didn't want to know about everything you'd been through, and I feel like absolute shit for having acted that way. So… I'm sorry."

Max leaned against her desk and watched Chloe pace in the small room, waiting for what Max assumed was a reply. Fuck, she's been a wreck all this time, I bet. I…I shouldn't have said what I said that day in the hospital. It's true, though. Chloe, you run from so much.

"I'm sorry, too," Max said with a sigh of exasperation, "I was shitty to you in the hospital when all you were was concerned and terrified for me. But Chloe, you do run-"

"Gee, Max. Great pep-talk-"

"Let me fucking finish," Max cut the bluenette off with a resolve in her voice that took Chloe back, her body language and face giving away her surprise, "You run from anything that hurts you, anyone that hurts you, and that is normal. Chloe, you also run from anything or anyone that tries to get close. You painted your relationship with Rachel as some kind of standard for all relationships to aspire to, but we both know things were only that way to you. I mean, wowser, you had this week with me and despite all the crazy you made me feel so happy and-"

"I felt that way too, Max. It's just that I get so scared that as soon as something hella cool happens in my life I just know it will go to shit."

"…That's a shitty outlook on life, Price."

Max walked the small distance between herself and held Chloe, the bluenette leaning her head down onto Max's shoulder. You don't have to pull away from me, Chloe. Never from me. Max opened her mouth to speak up when an alarm on her phone went off. Knowing what it was, Max let go of a crestfallen Chloe and switched the alarm off before rummaging through her camera bag once more. Pulling out a couple pill bottles, Max shook out two blue tablets and a smaller blue tablet. Snapping the smaller tablet in half, Max slid the remaining piece back into its container and dry-swallowed the medication. Seeing the look on Chloe's face, brows furrowed with her lips stretched into a grimace, Max felt the dorm room get very quiet before she spoke again.

"They're Wellbutrin and Abilify," Max explained, her voice giving away the reluctance she felt in sharing this information, "They're… They're for my depression…and PTSD…"

* * *

"What?" Max asked, seeing the pained look on Chloe's face as she finished putting the flannel that had once belonged to Rachel Amber on over her black tank-top. "Um, is it the shirt? I can get another-"

"You…You have PTSD…?" Chloe asked, sitting back down on the bed, "This is my fault."

" _What?"_ Max blurted out at Chloe's statement, walking over to jab a finger into the taller girl's chest, "Chloe Price, don't you dare. With everything I saw that week, it was inevitable that something would, well, break inside me. If it came down to being as I am now or you not being here, don't you _fucking_ think that I would rather be healthy than have my partner-in-crime sitting on my bed right now."

Max sat next to Chloe on the bed and pulled her friend close, letting Chloe's head fall softly onto her lap. Running her fingers through the azure hair, Max smirked at the lack of visible blonde roots or violet. _Aww, you dyed it recently. For me?_ Using both her hands, Max massaged Chloe's scalp while trying to ignore the choking sounds Chloe made as Max assumed her friend was trying to hold back the seemingly inevitable crying. _Wowser, this is_ not _how I thought our reunion would go down. I totally thought I'd be the one in tears. Chloe… What the hell happened while I was gone?_

"Hey," Max said, leaning down to kiss Chloe's mess of blue hair, "Sit up and tell me what I missed. I share, you share. Quid pro quo, Clarice."

"…Whatever you say, Dr. Lecter," Chloe replied as she sat up, a smirk on her face. _There she is_ , Max thought with a small grin as she ran a hand through Chloe's hair one more time to mess it up, " _Ugh_. Caulfield, this 'do takes some skill to put together."

"Bullshit," Max said, an incredulous look on her face, "It takes a comb and, what, five seconds…?"

"Fuck off."

"Is that a dare…?" Max teased, falling back onto her bed in laughter when Chloe jaw worked up and down but no words came out.

"When the _hella_ did Max Caulfield grow a fucking spine?" Chloe asked, lying down to join Max.

"…When I struck the match, Chlo," Max said, her eyes looking somewhere distant, beyond the ceiling where they were staring up at, "W-When… When I heard him scream."

Max and Chloe had talked about it only the one time at the hospital, what Max had done to Mark Jefferson. In a moment where she was the weakest, Max had broken through her meek shell and emerged as something stronger and colder; seeing Victoria, Nathan, and Chloe bound and gagged in a corner, both semi-conscious, Max had been able to swat away the syringe Jefferson had tried to plunge into her neck and tripped him up in her own drugged stupor.

 _Fumbling around in a foggy state, Max had crawled over to Chloe as quickly as she was able to and grabbed the gun they'd taken from Nathan back at school; the handgun felt oddly light as she swung it around and pulled the trigger. Aiming in no particular direction, Max cringed at the sharp cry of pain when Max's discharged round impacted and shattered Jefferson's right knee, blood and cartilage issuing forth from the gaping wound. Taking care with her aim, Max managed to blow out Jefferson's remaining knee with after the third attempt, the first two shots impacting into the wall behind her former photography idol._

" _M-Max…," Jefferson stammered out, "You really do have a gift, don't you?"_

"… _W-What…?" Max asked, her face a mask of pain and rage as she managed to pull herself to her feet, the gun inches from Jefferson's smiling face, "What the fuck did you say?"_

" _I… I bring you here and y-you…unh, you catch me in a moment of desperation. In my own studio, nonetheless!"_

 _It made Max's skin crawl how Jefferson sounded proud of her, proud of being able to stop him. What the hell is wrong with you?! Why would you do this, be like this and do these…things…to so many girls? You killed Rachel, violated Kate, and you tried to do it to me with Victoria soon after._

" _Fuck you," Max said with a hateful, disgusted sneer as she pistol-whipped Jefferson in the face._

" _Come on, Max," Jefferson said, spitting blood onto the floor, "You're better than some poor reply like that._

 _Max kicked at one of Jefferson's knees and he fell to the floor, cringing in pain. Untying his other victims, Max told Chloe to lead them up the stairs and away from the barn._

" _Max, we need to-" Chloe had interjected only to freeze in-place at the icy look on Max's face._

" _Get. Out."_

 _The four of them - Max, Chloe, Victoria, and Nathan - had torched the barn, Mark Jefferson locked away in the bunker as his legacy burned all around him in flame, ash, and gasoline._

"You…You never said what you did to him, Max…," Chloe said, shivering at the memory of how cold and empty Max had looked when she emerged from the barn.

"Do I _really_ need to?"

"…I guess not."

Max looked over to see Chloe's pensively stare up at the ceiling.

"Chloe…?" Max asked.

"Max… Max, are _you_ still there?" Chloe asked, a tear falling from her right eye. Max sat up and gave her friend a concerned frown.

"What do you mean?"

"…Is…fuck, this is probably just gonna make you hella pissed-"

"Price, just say what's on your mind," Max said, rubbing her thumb against the back of Chloe's reaching hand.

"…Is the nerdy girl I grew up with still there, still in you somewhere? I miss her."

" _I_ am right here, Chlo," Max sniffled as she leaned down to kiss Chloe on the cheek, "I can't say I'm all that girl, but people change through the shit they endure. Wowser, I'm turning into you."

At that tease, Chloe snorted and pulled her beanie down to cover her face, the headgear only covering as far as her nose. Max licked her lips before biting the lower one. She'd thought about it, that kiss from what really _was_ a lifetime ago, every day she'd been in Seattle. The quick brush with Chloe's lips before her "hella punk" friend had pulled away in surprise had stirred up something in Max. _I…I want more, more than this._

Leaning down, Max placed a hand on one of Chloe's shoulders. Seeing the lips enticing her stretch into a crooked grin, Max took a deep breath and leaned down. The muffled cry of surprise Chloe gave her quickly gave way to a wanting moan and Max realized that Chloe had been waiting for this moment. Sliding herself over to straddle Chloe, Max cupped her face and began to give Chloe a series of small kisses on her lips. Chloe's heavy gasps with the end of each kiss had Max wanting more and she pulled the taller girl up by her tank-top and smashed their lips together. Sliding her tongue against Chloe's teeth, Max felt her heart race further when said teeth parted and a hot tongue slid against her own. Feeling Chloe sit up under her own power, Max wrapped her tattooed arms around Chloe's midsection and locked her legs onto the bluenette.

They tasted each other, explored each other's mouths, lips, and necks with hungry kisses and wet tongues until both were red in the face. Pulling back, Max panted as she leaned her forehead against Chloe's and looked to see her childhood best friend giving her the most genuine smile she'd seen in over five years. _That's not a smart-ass punk smile. That's a BFF Pirate smile_ , Max thought sweetly as she began to cry.

"I-I missed you s-so much," Max stuttered out between sobs as she moved her head to rest it in the crook of Chloe's neck.

"I missed you, too," Chloe said softly into Max's ear, running a hand through Max's chestnut locks, "But we're together again, and apparently trying new things."

"Yeah," Max said with a snort, "And you didn't even have to dare me this time, you chickenshit."

"Hey!"

"What? You had to use a dare to get me to kiss you last time!" Max pulled back and laughed as Chloe joined her in their shared moment of happiness.

* * *

Clad in a flannel Dickies jacket and blue jeans, Max wandered the halls of Blackwell Academy in the time between her science class with Ms Grant and the art class that had remained focused on photography. Earbuds in place, Max listened to _The Fight Song_ by Marilyn Manson as she took in the half-empty hallway. _Nice choice, Chloe,_ Max thought to herself as she nodded along with the heavy guitar beat, _Though I don't think I'll be going goth or spilling blood on anyone anytime soon. This guy mos def alleviates my rage, though, amirite?_ Smirking to herself, Max walked to her locker and was about to open it when a hand slammed onto the door before Max could open it. Jerking her head in the direction of said hand, Max's narrowed eyes and bared teeth vanished at the sight of her newest friend.

 _Victoria Chase, voted "least likely to buddy up to Max Caulfield" by, well, Max Caulfield._

"Tell me we don't have to actually go in that damn room," Victoria said, pulling her hand back so that Max could drop off her science textbook, "Hey, let's go smoke 'em up in the bathroom or something!"

"Uh, I got my blaze on _before_ I even left my room this morning, Tori," Max said, chuckling a little, "And yes, we actually _do_ have to go in that damn room."

"Killin' my buzz, Maxine."

"What the fuck did you call me?"

"Um, sorry. Max, I meant Max."

The dynamic between them was still relatively the same, save that they looked out for each other after that October. _God, she wasn't drugged through the whole thing. Chloe and Prescott were halfway to Blitzed City but she saw everything._ Max remembered how tightly Victoria had clung to her in the following days; split away from Chloe after their fight, Max had taken Victoria up on her reluctant offer of friendship. Both girls living in Seattle when not attending Blackwell, Max had seen Victoria nearly every day of the three months it took for school to start back up.

"I like your natural hair color more," Max said, eyeing the blonde pixie cut Victoria was sporting, "It's like you, um, traveled in time and copied off yourself. Your long black hair was really nice, Tori."

"Appearances must be kept, Caulfield. Well, _some_ appearances," Victoria said as she joined Max in scanning the hall, "How was Ms Grant's class?"

"A joke," Max replied, heading toward the vending machine with Victoria alongside her, "No one knew what to say or do. Ms Grant tried to start class, but it was like class-wide shellshock."

"I'm assuming you sat in the back, quiet as can be," Victoria mused, smirking when Max looked away from her gaze, "Of course you did. God, Max, how is it you're tough as fuck when you're around friends but default back to that shy, twee hipster bullshit around everybody else? Do you have a switch somewhere that gets pressed?"

"Fuck you, too," Max spat back, the edge in her voice making her cringe as she caught a glance at Victoria's pained expression. Taking the energy drink she'd bought, Max purchased another and handed it to Victoria, "I'm sorry. I... I'm not the best at tact anymore, or impulse control. The slightest thing sets me off and, wowser, do _not_ get me started on strangers or crowds."

"It's still that bad?" Victoria asked, sipping at her beverage as they hung around the main hallway.

"The pills and therapy only do so much, and it's like a damn merry-go-round of pill regimens; I'm on something different every month or two. I'm sick of it, all of it."

Max chugged half the energy drink she'd bought for herself down in only a couple gulps, in need of caffeine from the inability to get very much sleep. _Three months of nightmares and cold sweats, three months of seeing that asshole's face just as I wake up._ Pulling out a sports bottle, Max poured the remaining energy drink into the empty container and capped the bottle shut before discarding the can. _Need you for later, Max must. Precious, my caffeine is._

"Max!" a voice called from the entrance to the school's main building and both Max and Victoria looked over to see Kate Marsh come running. The sunlight emanating from behind her made it look as though she were haloed. _How did she bounce back so well? Is it because her shit got resolved by someone else, by_ me _, while I did all the fucking dirty work? Why? Why do I sometimes loathe the people I also love?_ Max thought, a slight bitterness masked behind her welcoming smile. She wouldn't change the outcome, her friends surviving the nightmare that had been October, but bearing the weight of it all on her shoulders was sometimes too much for Max. _That's what the pills…and the cigarettes…and the occasional pot are for. Still won't touch beer, though. Yuck._

"Whoa, nice to see you too, Kate!" Max said cheerily with a gasp as Kate hugged her tightly. "O-Okay, Kate. Kate, you can let go now. Kate? _Kate."_

"Sorry," Kate said, picking up on the darkening tone in Max's voice. Max no longer let people touch her unless she initiated it, the alarm in her head bringing out the impulse to punch whoever so much as laid a fingertip on her, "Hey, Victoria."

"Um, hi," Victoria said awkwardly, biting at the inside of her cheek, "…How was, well, the three-month pseudo-vacation?"

"Good, I guess," Kate said, oblivious to Victoria's discomfort, "Volunteer work, continued plotting out my children's book. You?"

"I, uh, I just fucking chilled," Victoria blurted out, though Max knew that wasn't entirely accurate.

Max opened her mouth to speak when they all heard the bell go off; as if they were of one mind, all three girls looked down the hallway towards what had once been their favorite class. Seeing a group of students gathered outside the open door, Max looked at her friends and realized they were waiting for her to do something. _What the butt?_

"Uh, ladies first?" Max asked, motioning for Victoria or Kate to go ahead of her. When neither girl budged, Max's brows furrowed. "You _can't_ be cereal. You expect _me_ , off the three of us, to be down for entering th-that room _first_?"

"I think they're all waiting for you, too," Kate said, motioning to the crowd of students, "I see Stella, Dana, Taylor, and Hayden. I knew Alyssa wasn't coming back."

"Aww, Daniel isn't there either," Max said with a frown. _He drew the coolest portrait of me ever. Well, the only one. But it was totally cool!_ "Fine. Fine, I'll go."

Max took off her jacket and tied the sleeves around her waist to secure it. _One set of armor for one class, another set of armor for another._ Sporting her Jane Doe tank-top, Max's tattooed arms were obvious as she walked down the hall, her steel-toe boots sounding like tiny thunderclaps as Chloe's bullet necklace dangled from around her neck. Chloe had given it to her before she'd left that morning, _Hella good luck for a hella badass SuperMax!,_ Chloe had told her. Fingering one of the bullets, Max stopped a few feet away from the crowd and coughed to get their attention.

"What the absolute fuck?" Max asked, arching an eyebrow as she put a hand on one hip, "It's a classroom, not a torture dungeon. I've seen that, remember?"

"God, Max!" Dana said, Taylor putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Don't say shit like that!"

"Why the fuck not? I'm not over it, I'll never be, but you all being scared to enter while expecting _me_ to go in first is bullshit. He's not here anymore! Newsflash, amirite?"

Pushing herself through the small-knit group of people, Max took Kate's hand and led her and Victoria into the classroom only to stop mid-step across the threshold. _H-Holy fuck… No one… No one's changed a damn thing!_ The tables situated exactly as they had been, the only difference in the classroom was the lack of anything associated with Jefferson's time at Blackwell Academy. _Different posters and equipment are cool, b-but… I thought this would be easier, not be like… like.._.

"Hey," Max heard Victoria say as she and Kate helped Max to the back table where they all three sat, "C'mon, Max. Come back to us, yeah?"

"Wha…?" Max asked, as though coming out of a trance. Seeing where she was, seeing the other students look at her, Max scrambled to get out of her seat only to be held in-place by both Kate and Victoria. "Let me the fuck go! Let _me_ **go**!"

"Max!" Dana yelled as she walked over from her seat next to Taylor, Taylor swiftly moving from behind Dana to help the other girls keep Max's panic attack under control. "Oh, Maxie, you're okay! We're all here, here for you! Please, please calm down!"

"Fucking goddamn motherfuckers and your bullshit smiles!" Max hissed through gritted teeth as she squirmed under the hands of her friends. "Don't…Don't _touch_ me! Don't you fucking touch me! Y-You d-don't know what I saw, w-what I-"

"What is going on here?" a voice boomed out from the doorway, everyone's attention on Principal Wells, the school's administrator looking even more worse for wear than he had immediately following that week in October.

 _What the fuck?!_ Max thought as she glared at Wells, her body eerily still as the other girls pulled back.

* * *

Principal Wells stood in the doorway of the art room; for Max, he might as well have been standing right in front of her face. There wasn't any smugness or satisfaction to his demeanor, Principal Wells looking more fatigued and sober than anything else. Max didn't notice any of that, however, as she was focused on what felt to her like utter ludicrousness.

 _How the fuck do you still work here?!_ kept running through Max's head over and over. The world seemed to blur in her mind until all Max could see was Wells staring at her like she knew she was staring at him. _How in the blue fuck are you still working here? Whose money did you take this time, whose secrets are you keeping locked away?_ All those questions didn't matter, because what came out summed it all up for Max, in the room and situation she found herself in.

"What the goddamn hell?" Max's words were slow, metaphorically dripping with venom as her narrowed eyes glared at the administrator of Blackwell Academy, Wells responding with a grimace as he appeared visibly uncomfortable being under Max's scrutiny.

"Now I know that last year was a trying time-", Wells started to say.

" _How_ do you still work here?" Max cut him off, rage giving way to disbelief and a slightly manic grin on her face.

"…What we need to focus on is coming together as a school-"

"I mean, _sure_ you can do the job…but should you…?" Max cut Wells off again, shrugging Victoria's hand off her shoulder as she stood up and leaned against the table, "How can you stand there and talk about togetherness and friendship and _blah-fucking-blah_ when one girl _**died**_ under your watch, and three other girls were violated or near violated? I mean, we're sitting right here and you spout this bullshit like it's candy for us to eat up? Wowser," Max finished, shaking from trying to suppress a bout of hysterical laughter with her jaw clenched and lips thinned.

" _Ms_ Caulfield," Wells said, his voice stern as he moved from the doorway and into the classroom proper, "I can understand why my still serving this school might be a…misjudgment in your eyes-"

"Understatement of the _Ever_ ," Max said with a snort as she flopped back into her seat at Kate's whispered pleas, "I'm sitting, Kate, I'm sitting. Honest to Dog…"

Arms crossed with a foot on the table, Max quirked an eyebrow at Wells and made a face that told him to say his peace.

"Max, I can't say how sorry I am about everything that happened," Wells uttered, the fatigue settling back in as his shoulders slumped over, "I… I failed as a caretaker of you all. Being given a second chance, no matter how ludicrous it seems, means a lot to me and I hope you'll give me… _Max, sit down!"_

Max was up, bag slung over her shoulder as she slid her chair back in quietly. _Fuck this and fuck you, Mr. Principal_ , Max's inner thoughts rife with sarcasm, _You can spout whatever you want but it all sounds fake so I'm out._

"Let me know what our homework is?" Max asked first Kate, then Victoria. Victoria nodded solemnly and scooted into the table a bit more to let Max pass by.

Wells was hesitant in his body language as to whether he should stop the once-meek girl or let her through. Max noticed this and sneered at the man with her hands balled into fists as she stopped in mid-step and stared down the school's administrator. _Truth is, I'm not even really mad at you. I'm mad at whoever left you still in charge, tool bag._

"Can I go?" Max asked, her voice cool to a point of making Dana shiver, "If it were any other day, I swear…"

"…We'll need to have a private conversation in the _very_ near future, Ms Caulfield," Wells said, stepping aside, "I know what you went through, but that doesn't excuse this behavior. It's… It's been three months, Max…"

"Yeah, because an early 'vacation' makes _all the wounds_ heal," Max said as she rolled her eyes, muttering "Dumbass" as she went through the doorway and into the hall.

Photography having been the last class scheduled for the day, Max whipped her phone out of the camera bag slung alongside her and began to furiously type.

 **Max: Chlo?**

 **Chloe: Maxaroni! Dude, s'up?**

 **Max: WTGDMF, Wells just strolled into Photo class like everything is 'A-Ok'. Ass.**

 **Chloe: Oh, did you punch him? Did I miss those tiny fists of fury?**

 **Max: No, there was no Crouching Hipster, Hidden Ninja for you to see. I just bailed. Stare-down, though - You missed the eyeballing equivalent of a showdown.**

 **Chloe: Oooh, such eye. Very ball. Much angst. Wow.**

 **Max; Fuck off, Chlo-Doge :P**

 **Chloe: NO EMOJI!**

 **Max: :P XD ;P :( :( (-_-)**

 **Chloe: …I've killed people for less than this…**

 **Max: Bullshenanigans. I've nearly destroyed the world to save your lanky ass. Rock Paper Max, and Max ALWAYS wins.**

 **Max: You still in my room?**

 **Chloe: Nah, just cruisin. Dude, I'm hella on my way if you want to hang, which you totally better**

 **Max: Waiting out front. Let's do something fun ;)**

Max sat next to the bus stop and smoked a cigarette, waiting for Chloe to come by in her beater truck. She'd thought about just using her Jeep and meeting Chloe wherever her friend was, but Max missed sitting shotgun as she and Chloe shot through Arcadia Bay. _It was the best of times, it was the hella worst of times_ , Max thought to herself as she looked at the smoldering stick of tobacco, the end glowing amber with tendrils of smoke wafting in the crisp January breeze. Shivering, Max realized the flannel jacket was still tied around her waist; hurriedly, Max fumbled with the knot and slid the warm material on, snapping it up until the goose-flesh sensation on her arms seemed to go away. Looking over her shoulder, Max pulled out her Polaroid and walked up the steps to stand in front of the fountain. At some point during the three-month closure, the statue had been vandalized; the head had been removed and haphazardly welded back on.

"Franken-Blackhell," Max said to herself with a chuckle as she snapped a picture, "Makes sense, I guess. This place is half-dead, and we're all bonkers for coming back here."

"Yeah, but if you didn't you would totally miss my _not_ -lanky ass," Chloe chimed in, pulling back when Max instinctively took a swing from being startled, "Whoa, Max! Chill!"

"…Goddamnit, Chloe," Max said with an irritated sigh, shaking her head before wrapping her friend up in a hug, "You totally suck. I could have broken your damn nose, you goofy-ass tree."

"Pfft, yeah okay," Chloe replied with a snort, "So? How was the first day of school? Did you make any new friends, or perhaps you were hit on by a certain Waldo…?"

"No, _Mom_ , I learned nothing and was 'hit on' by no one," Max gave Chloe a chagrined look and punched her friend in the shoulder, "I might be, though. I haven't seen Brooke around so I might be in line to 'go ape' or whatever…"

"Dear Lord, no," Chloe put a hand to her chest and made as though to faint before folding over in laughter, "Oh, I can see it now in the school newspaper: _Guinness Record made when boy gets shot down for billionth and one time!"_

"Stop, Chloe," Max chastised her friend, tilting her head with arms crossed, "Warren is nice and a friend. Besides, we've got…stuff…to talk about…"

Max linked arms with Chloe and they walked together down to the parking lot as the final bell sounded, school being out for the day. The truck had been replaced, Max's jaw dropping at the sight of an old Vespa scooter as Chloe tossed her a helmet. _Is it bad that this kinda turns me on? Chloe, you_ know _I'm a Fooly Cooly supernerd…_

"Fooly Cooly!" Chloe cried out in her best impression of Haruko Haruhara, Max's eyes widening as her lips stretched into a face-splitting grin. "Nice wheels, yeah?"

"Badassness aside, how do you not freeze your ass off? And what if it rains? What if-" Max started to say when Chloe put her hands on Max's shoulders.

" _Dude_ , for real? We are amazeballs and reunited once more. Just… Just enjoy it, Max, and hold the fuck on. I don't mess when it comes to Jezebel."

"You named the scooter _Jezebel_?" Max asked in an amused tone as she slid into the seat behind Chloe, arms wrapped around the other girl's waist.

"…Super-anything was taken," Chloe said, pausing before looking over her shoulder with a smile, "Nothing beats Max."

Max bit her lip and pressed her face into Chloe's back, desperate to hide the redness forming in her cheeks at Chloe's statement. _Oh my Dog, Oh my DOG_ , Max thought as she waited for the scooter to start. When nothing happened, Max pulled away and saw Chloe looking at her from the corner of her eye.

"What?" Max asked, head tilted in confusion as Chloe put the kickstand back down and moved to sit in the seat backwards so that she was facing Max. "Chloe?"

"I…I'd…," Chloe stammered, brows knit together tightly as it looked to Max like her friend was mentally fighting with herself. When Chloe's shoulders slumped, Max feared for the worst…until her friend tapped at her lips with a gloved finger. "This. I want another."

"…Y-You…You want another kiss?" Max asked, a slight grin on her face as Chloe looked away and nodded while biting her lower lip. _Holy butts, you are so freaking precious right now, Chloe._ "…Do it again."

"W-What?"

"Do what you just did again. It was super-sweet," Max asked, her tone conveying the genuine affection she felt at that moment.

"I…Um, I'd like another one of these," Chloe blushed as she tapped at her lips again, "…Please?"

Max leaned in and brought her lips softly against Chloe's, their breath mingling together in a slight vapor as Max's arms wrapped around Chloe's waist. Chloe's mouth was searingly hot to Max, the tongue sliding against her own like a firebrand as their lips broke away only to reconnect again and again. Forgetting where she was, Max let herself get lost in the kiss and felt a moment of happy peace as Chloe seemed unwilling to let her lips leave Max's for too long. Only when Max pulled back to gasp for air did Chloe halt her advance, a pleased grin on her face getting a crooked smirk from Max.

"More?" Chloe asked, eyes alight with a brightness Max only remembered from old memories. _You're hella cute when you're happy, Chloe, if this…if_ I _make you happy…_

"Later, gal pal. For now…we ride!"

 **Author's Notes -**

 **I swear I haven't disappeared! Eheheh, I've been posting this story installment-by-installment on Tumblr as a nice thing for those who follow me on there and friends who don't check out my account here on FanFiction. What you all are getting is parts 1-5 brought together into a single chapter of this story. For every 10 installments I put up on Tumblr I'll put 5 up here, so that it is still for Tumblr friends/followers.**

 **If you want the more in-depth Author's Notes where I go into not only PTSD but _my_ PTSD, however, you will _have_ to go look up my Tumblr installments.**

 **Read, Review, and I'll see you all later!**

 **Polarized is coming, and I'm _so_ not ready! XP**

 **Stay Hella, Cinnamon Rolls!**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Metamorphosis, continued**_

 _ **"The Morning After", by Meg Myers**_

"For Gondor!" Chloe cried out, revving the Vespa's engine before giving Max one final look. "Did you really think I wouldn't get that reference? Where to, Maxine Stormcrow?"

"…The lighthouse…," Max said, her eyes intense as Chloe's narrowed in hesitation before she flipped up the kickstand. Heading down the road, Chloe let out a whoop of delight to Max's delighted smile as she pressed her face into Chloe's back.

The sensation of crisp air whipping at the parts of her not covered by Chloe's body sent a thrill up Max's spine as she wrapped her arms around the other girl's waist a little more tightly. _This right here. This is how it should be: me, Chloe, and the road. No Blackwell or drama. I've only just gotten back, again, and I feel like I missed out on even more. Where's the truck, Chloe? What changed in the three months I was gone to make you so…so…so different-yet-similar?_ Max grimaced as the Vespa took a sharp turn heading into town and felt her friend's body shake a bit as Chloe laughed.

"Wowser, just fuck off, Chloe," Max said, rolling her eyes but unable to hide her smile.

"I'm sorry! Didn't catch that!" Chloe teased, raising her voice as though she couldn't hear Max over the incredible 20mph they were going. _You're so full of shit, Chloe. Ugh, so very full._

"I _said_ let's find somewhere quiet, secluded, and _fuck_!" Max hollered back, laughing when the Vespa throttled down a little as Chloe got visibly flustered. _Shit! Teasing Chloe with sexy stuff while steering a Vespa equals hella unsafe! Shit shit shiiiiiit!_ Max pressed herself tightly into Chloe's back and held her breath as Chloe regained her composure. Max could feel Chloe's heart pounding, matched only by her own heart thundering in her chest even more so than the punk's. "Sorry!"

"You jackass, Caulfield!" Chloe shot back. "You can't say shit like that while I'm steering, Max!"

"I said I'm sorry!" Max risked agitating Chloe further and leaned up so that her chin was resting on Chloe's shoulder, "For cereal, Chloe. I'm fucking sorry, okay?"

"…A'ight, but you totally need to hella behave. Can't really afford for this to take a shit, too," Chloe said, though Max got the impression that the last part was more Chloe thinking aloud than actual talking.

A few quick turns and a thankfully-straight road all the way from Two Whales to the lighthouse later, Max was walking hand in hand with Chloe as they made their way up the lighthouse path. Looking through the trees to her left, Max saw the sunset play over the ocean waves; the shimmer was hypnotic to Max, unconsciously pulling out her Polaroid only to stop when she heard Chloe snicker.

"What?" Max asked, brow furrowed in confusion and a little irritation, "I _am_ trying to be a photographer, y'know."

"Oh, it's not that," Chloe said with a smile as she framed Max up with her hands like she was looking for a perfect shot of her hipster friend, "It's… Well, after our fight I thought I'd never see you again, much less see _this…"_

"This _what_?" Max asked, one booted foot already into the thick grass, "Chloe, I'm losing some golden shots here. _What_ did you think you wouldn't see?"

"You…being like this, being like yourself," Chloe said reluctantly, gripping onto Max's hand when the brunette tried to pull away, "C'mon, dude. You know I didn't mean it like however you're taking it. I just… _ugh_ , I can't speak for shit. Max, seeing you smile is something I thought I'd never see again, okay? It's nice. You're nice. _This_ is nice."

Max's pulling away lessened before stopping entirely and she intertwined her fingers with Chloe's before looking over her shoulder at the oddly quiet punk. Chloe's eyes were watery and Max slipped the Polaroid camera into her bag; pulling Chloe to her, Max held onto her friend and hushed the taller girl while rubbing her back. _God, she really thought I was never coming back. Again. Good job, Max. You put her through more… No, no this isn't on you. I went through a fucking nightmare on repeat and relive it in my goddamn sleep. I'm sorry you worried Chloe, but I'm not sorry that I needed time for me._

"I needed time, Che," Max's words were soft-spoken, the use of Max's childhood nickname for Chloe a strategic maneuver to lessen the truth's harshness, "I… I couldn't be here and start to heal. I'm still healing, even now, trying to find whoever I am _now_."

"What I _know_ , what I swear to fucking God, is that I want you in my life," Max continued, taking both of Chloe's hands into her own, "You're my best friend, and possibly more…"

"Possibly…?" Chloe's head snapped up and her eyes widened before Max tilted her head and gave Chloe an appraising look.

"You're going to have to be patient with me on that, Che. I…I went through some things, stuff you don't know about. I-I… They're hard to talk about, even now, never mind work through. Just match my pace and we'll see, okay?" Max stood on her tip-toes and brushed her nose against Chloe's in an Eskimo kiss before giving her friend a quick peck on the lips. "I'm worth the wait, right?"

"Hella worth it," Chloe said with a nod as she led Max up the hill, "But I want to know all the details, Max. I know it'll take fucking time, but I _need_ to know. Not today, not tomorrow, but eventually. Okay?"

"O-Okay…," Max said, watching Chloe from behind as they continued up the hill. _How did I get so lucky? How are you so nice to me when we've barely been back in action for a day?_ "Chloe, wait."

Max relinquished Chloe's hand and watched her friend stop mid-step before spinning on a heel to face her; motioning to a boulder that briefly divided the path, Max climbed up with Chloe passing her by.

"Showoff," Max grumbled only to gasp when one of her feet slipped. Feeling a hand grab tightly onto the collar of her jacket, Max looked up to see Chloe looming over her. "Uh…"

"Less 'Uh' and more climb, Caulfield," Chloe said with gritted teeth, Max snapping out of her fugue state when realizing that Chloe was trying to pull her up. Scrambling up the rest of the way, Max took a seat next to Chloe and brushed the dirt off her knees.

"Sorry," Max's tone was sheepish as she apologized, a contrast to her appearance and recent change in demeanor that Chloe noticed with a quirk of her eyebrow.

"Nice to see you're still the klutziest klutz to ever klutz," Chloe teased, Max grimacing with her lips thinned.

"You suck."

"Cigarettes, weed, and beer," Chloe said, nodding appraisingly before getting a mischievous look that had Max narrowing her eyes. " _Oh_ , and your _face_."

"God, what are you? 13? You gonna tell me next that you can get AIDS by petting a cat, like in those sex-ed videos we had to watch…?" Max chided back before looking at her friend with an earnest expression, "I'm sorry I left you. Again."

"Dude, you were hella fucked up. I… I can't blame you for that, or for needing time away. Just wish you'd have called, but that's Max _Caul_ field for you…," Chloe's joke sounded half-hearted to Max.

"…I know, and _again_ I'm an asshole," Max said, sliding her hand over so that it was brushing against Chloe's, their pinkies linking together as Chloe looked over at her, "I came back, though."

"Yeah," Chloe's voice seemed far away as she leaned her head onto Max's shoulder, "You hella did."

Max looked down at the mess of azure hair nestled on her shoulder with a look of curiousness. _Chloe's_ never _been like this before, been so mushy or whatever this is. Where is this coming from? The quick acceptances, the smiles, and the kisses all seem… Everything seems so different and, well, it's kinda strange._

"Che?"

"Mmm?"

"…Not that I'm not stoked that you're all up on me," Max was careful to keep her voice light and cheery despite the nagging sense of something being wrong, "Where is all this coming from, the mushy? You never do this type of stuff…at least, not really with me…"

"…Maybe I just missed you fucking crazy after getting you for all of a couple weeks," Chloe snapped back, or tried to; her head and hand remaining connected to Max took a lot out of Chloe's attempt at sounding irritated, "It's… It's been rough, these months. Super rough. Did I tell you David and Joyce made up? Stepdouche has re-entered the building."

"He's not _that_ douche-y, is he?" Max asked, "He didn't mellow out at all?"

"…Okay, so maybe he's at least fucking civil with me," Chloe sat up and slid down the boulder onto the ground to look up at Max, the brunette's tilted head giving away her questioning mind, " _Okay_ , maybe he's trying to be nice for once. Max, it's…"

"…When I was looking for Rachel, I had a drive, y'know? I had a goddamn quest and was hardcore focused on that. When you came back, no offense, but you kinda screwed up my head some. I was and still am totally loving you being back here with me, but in October… With everything that went down, you left and it was almost like my dad dying and you bailing all over again…"

"C-Chloe…," Max stammered out, brows furrowing as she began to build a defense to reply with only to have Chloe raise a hand.

"Dude, I'm _not_ blaming you or guilt-tripping you. I'm just saying there was a _lot_ of grief…but there was also a chance to heal. I didn't see nearly any of the shit you did, I only heard about _some_ of it from you, so I was able to grasp onto some fucking sanity for once. I'm rambling, aren't I? _Ugh."_

"Keep going," Max said encouragingly, sliding down to stand next to Chloe and slide her black-nailed fingers into Chloe's blue-nailed ones, "Please?"

"How about we just go up to the hilltop and I'll spill my guts out-," Chloe started to say only to jump a little as a thunderclap in the distance broke her concentration, "That was out of fucking nowhere. Hey, we should probably…Max? Max?"

Max stood, visibly catatonic, with tears running down her face from eyes wide open in horror. _Storm is coming…storm…storm…Chloe, I'm so sorry…S-Storm…_

The last thing Max saw before unconsciousness claimed was Chloe standing leaning over her with a terrified look on her face.

 _I'm so sorry. I…I tried to save you…_

* * *

Max didn't remember getting into the backseat of Joyce's car, didn't know how she had gotten down the hill to where Joyce was waving at her and Chloe to hurry up as the storm reached town. _Chloe,_ Max managed to piece together words in her head, those words becoming coherent thought, _It was probably Chloe…_

 _The lightning almost seemed to bend around the tornado as Max fell to her knees in exhaustion, bracing herself at the last second on the bench overlooking Arcadia Bay from where the lighthouse had been. Glancing over her shoulder, wind whipping her hair and hood, Max saw the bottom half of the structure still in place._ The lantern is somewhere down there, _Max thought as she returned her attention to the oceanfront and the vortex approaching her childhood hometown,_ I thought I was going to die. I might still die.

 _Wiping her nosebleed with a soggy jacket sleeve, Max reached out with her hand again and screamed through gritted teeth as the storm began to unravel in a painstakingly slow fashion. It felt to Max as though every nerve in her hand and arm were on fire, her veins pushing out from under her pale skin. Her head was pounding, the beat of her heart working in rhythm with the pulsing migraine that was making her vision dim._ Just…a little bit…more…

" _Max!" a voice cried out from a short distance behind her, but Max already knew it was Chloe. She'd seen this before, in her nightmares and visions; I'm here, the storm is here, and Chloe is right alongside me. Then, I wake up._

 _But this is_ not _a dream._

 _Her arm having gone numb, Max watched it fall to her side and go limp. Even when her arms would fall asleep she could at least make her fingers twitch, but there wasn't any movement or sensation now as Max just stared at her arm before looking up with her red-hazed vision to see the tornado spiral in reverse until it began to dissipate…_

"Max, Max please fucking snap out of it," Max heard a voice choke out, felt clammy hands pressed against her own. Ripped out of her flashback, Max recoiled and pushed herself to the end of the backseat opposite from where Chloe was sitting.

Max's eyes opened as wide as possible, they darted from side to side as her disorientation of feeling that she was back in that fateful October week subsided while she grew accustomed to her surroundings. Flinching when Chloe reached out to her, Max gasped out a breath of air as the reality of her situation began to dawn on her. Hyperawareness kicking in, Max realized how scary and terrifying she might have just been and drew her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them so as to look at Chloe through a mess of unruly chestnut locks. _No. No no no nonono,_ Max thought as she saw the worried look on Chloe's face and the pained expression on Joyce's as it was reflected through the rearview mirror.

"P-Please… Please don't look at me like that…," Max's voice was little more than a mewling whisper, a quiet plea that brought Chloe alongside her. Tensing only for a second or two, Max quickly began to sob into Chloe's already-soaked shirt. "I-I'm sorry, Chloe. I-I'm so s-sorry. I'm… I'm a _freak_."

"Max Caulfield," Joyce chimed in, pulling the car into the Prices' driveway before turning in her seat to place a hand on one of Max's knees, "You are most certainly not a freak. Darlin', you are one of the bravest, strongest women I know and you're _only 18._ There're things you've probably seen that nobody could put up with, sweetie, much less keep goin' on."

Despite Joyce's words reassuring her, Max continued to cry as Chloe gently rocked her in the backseat; Joyce leaving them alone for some privacy, Max looked up at Chloe with puffy eyes and a quivering lip to apologize only to whimper when Chloe leaned in to plant a kiss on Max's trembling bottom lip. _Chloe… Chloe, I'm so sorry. I saved you, but I don't think there's enough of me left for you. Coming back… Coming back to Blackwell and this place was a mistake. You're amazing, but this place is_ so _wrong…_

"C'mon," Chloe's voice was cautious and tender as she buttoned up Max's flannel jacket, "You're freezing and wet, Maxaroni. I got clean clothes and some decent weed upstairs, and I bet Joyce'll whip you up _anything_ you feel like getting your grub on with."

When Max didn't budge, Chloe looked out the window to see the storm clouds rolling above; turning her attention back to Max, Chloe brushed strands of wet hair out of her friend's face.

"You are _not_ a freak, Max," Chloe's tone was resolute, shaking Max out of her self-loathing as she nuzzled her face into Chloe's shirt again, "You are a fucking badass who has just hella 'seen some shit'. We'll get you put back together, you and me. We're partners-in-crime, remember? Where would you be without your faithful companion?"

The words echoing back months pulled Max further out of her self-pitying thoughts and she sat up straight to lean her forehead into Chloe's.

"I-It's not fair. I get back, get you back, and my world is fucking broken," Max's says in a raspy voice, "Chloe, I'm so sor-"

"No. Stop apologizing," Chloe's tone is stern as she looks Max in the eye while they're foreheads are still touching, "You are Max, in whatever shape you're in. You tried to be there for me last Fall when I wouldn't let you half the damn time, so let me hella be here for you now."

Max stood in the bathroom of Chloe and Joyce's house and stared at her reflection. Eyes red with matted hair and a sniffling nose, Max had been having difficulty reconciling who she saw in the mirror with how she felt inside. _I see me, but I don't feel like the person looking back. Am I still that girl at all? Is there… Is there anything left of who I w-was…?_ Max peeled off her tank-top and jeans; standing in nothing but her underwear and bra, Max looked at the wadded up plaid sleep pants and t-shirt Chloe had provided. _Wowser, guess a sleepover is mandatory, huh? At least they don't smell_ entirely _like pot or beer…_

Slipping the dry clothes on, Max ran her fingers through the wet mess of hair on her head and splashed some warm water on her face before heading out the bathroom and nearly walking head-first into Chloe. Not expecting Chloe to be waiting right outside the bathroom, Max's eyes widened in a moment of panic before softening at the embarrassed smirk on her friend's face.

"Chloe Price, were you going to check up on me?" Max weakly teased, a half-smile on her face as she was too exhausted to try and appear cheerful.

"… _May_ be…," Chloe replied, taking Max by the hand; leading Max into her bedroom, Chloe shut the door behind her friend and spun on her heels.

Max didn't notice the smell at first, or the clothes her friend was wearing. Still a little out-of-sorts from the storm going on outside, it took a few seconds for the scent of eggs and bacon to catch her attention…as well as Chloe being in sleep attire similar to her own.

"You brought me breakfast-in-bed for dinner…?" Max asked, her half-smile growing as a fluttering sensation welled up from the pit of her stomach. "Hella cute, Price."

"In case of emergency, break glass and use mushy bullshit," Chloe joked before lifting Max's chin up with a thumb, "Hey, Max…"

"…Yeah?" Max asked, her eyes alight when Chloe tapped on her lips. "You egg. C'mere, Che."

Max felt Chloe's soft lips heat her own as the bluenette leaned down for a kiss; while lacking the intense want from the kiss in Max's room, the tenderness replacing it was exactly what Max needed. Taking Chloe's other hand so that both sets of hands were intertwined, Max stood on her tip-toes and felt a throaty moan emanate from Chloe to which Max responded with a pleased humming sound. Pulling back after a few minutes, Max looked over her shoulder at the steaming breakfast food waiting for them.

"I am _so_ down to nosh right now," Max said, letting go of Chloe's hands to pat her growling belly, "Eggs and bacon, come to Momma."

Hearing Chloe snort, Max warily eyed her friend's impish grin.

"Hey, 'Ready for the nosh pit, _shaka brah_?" Chloe teased as she broke into a fit of giggles.

"Wowser, Chloe," Max rolled her eyes and playfully shoved one of Chloe's shoulders, "You're _so_ original. Also, eat me."

"Well… I'd prefer-" Chloe's words were cut off by the sight of Max's face turning a dark shade of red.

" _C-Chloe…!"_

* * *

Max was laying down on Chloe's bed, her friend's full belly serving as a pillow, when her phone went off. Rolling her eyes, she made to get up when Chloe's hand grabbed her wrist and Max looked at the bluenette with a curious expression. _Uh, you afraid of phones now?_

"Um, I might need to get that, Chlo," Max said, quirking an eyebrow up to which Chloe reluctantly let go, "I'm not going anywhere, I swear I'm not."

Walking over to her jacket, Max plucked her phone out and swiped at the screen before smiling and showing off the alarm notification to Chloe.

"See?" Max asked, walking over to give Chloe her phone, "It's just the alarm for my night meds… Oh…Oh, _shit…"_

"Max?" Chloe asked, brow furrowing as Max put a hand up to her face, "Hey, you okay?"

"…I didn't realize I'd be staying the night. My sleep medication is in my dorm room," Max slumped her shoulders as she fell face-first onto Chloe's bed with a soft _whump. "_ Fuck my life."

"Dude, you need drugs to help you sleep? _I_ can cover you on that," Chloe said with a wink and impish grin. _Need something a little stronger than beer and weed, dork._

Giving Chloe a strained smile, Max flipped around and got back on her feet. Walking over to her camera bag, Max began to rifle through its contents until she heard the now-familiar rattle of pills in a container. Smiling in relief, she pulled out a small bottle and shook it in the air in triumph. _Thank Dog_ , Max thought as she ran a hand through her hair and caught a whiff of dried dirt.

" _Ugh_ , I smell like a bog," Max said, pulling down some strands of hair so that she could catch a stronger smell, "Oh _fuck! Chloe_ , why didn't you say anything?"

Seeing the confused look on her friend's face, Max walked over and took off Chloe's beanie to the other girl's surprise; taking a smell of Chloe's hair, Max's nose wrinkled in the strong scent of dirty water and sweat.

"You smell worse than me," Max stated as she pulled back, Chloe's eyes narrowing at the disgusted look on Max's face.

"Hella no, I smell…," Chloe sniffed at herself and nearly gagged before smelling the bed, "Awwww, dude, the bed smells like this now, too! What the hella fucking bullshit is this?"

Max averted her eyes when Chloe responded to her own funk by stripping right where she was sitting, nearly screaming in utter shock when a musty-smelling shirt landed on her head. Looking at Chloe from underneath the black cotton, Max saw her friend stick her tongue out before winking. Her mind not catching up with her reaction, it took a few moments for Max to process that she was seeing Chloe naked for the first time since they'd been kids. When the realization hit, Max's face turned such a scarlet hue that she watched Chloe bite her lower lip to keep from laughing. _Oh…Oh my Dog…_

"Like what you're gawkin' at, Caulfield?" Chloe asked, uncrossing her legs.

" _Oh my fucking Dog!"_ Max was out the bedroom door and into the bathroom so quickly Chloe's short burst of laughter came across as an echo to her. _Oh my… Holy fuck, she was… Chloe was naked…_

"…and my anti-anxiety pills are in the bedroom," Max bowed her head as she leaned against the bathroom door and banged her head against it only to scream out of fright when a knocking emanated from the other side. "Goddamnit! _What_?!"

"…Sorry," Chloe's voice came from the other side, muffled and quiet, "I was just fucking with you, Max, s'all. Um, you need these pills…?"

"God, yes," Max looked up at the ceiling and rolled her eyes before getting to her feet; cracking the door open just enough for Chloe to hand over the medication, Max was about to close the door when a blue-nailed hand gripped the wood and pushed so that Chloe could join Max in the bathroom, "Che, I'm not really feeling up to any more teasing or fucking around. Can I just take my shower, take my meds, and get some sleep? The balance of shit and nice is a little off and what sleep I can manage would be appreciated…"

"No, no fucking around," Chloe said as she took Max's hands and leaned down to kiss her friend's forehead, "I…I just, well, I want to shower with you. No teasing, I hella swear! I think it would be amazeballs, and it'll bring me a little closer to you…"

"…Alright, but _no_ screwing with my head. The teasing, the playful looks," Max shook her head but the weary smile gave away her consent to Chloe's request and they both began to undress, "You're fucking terrible sometimes, Chloe, and sometimes you're amazing."

"I _am_ rather Priceless…," Chloe said, smirking at her own joke while Max slumped her shoulders.

"And I thought _my_ jokes were bad…"

Max let out a purr of contentment as Chloe soaped down her back with a washcloth and began to scrub away. _This_ _feels so damn good,_ Max thought as she bit her lip with eyes partially rolled up in her head, _How does she know all the spots? Is she magical like that? Is this witchcraft?_ Looking over her shoulder at Chloe, Max smiled at the other girl and watched as Chloe focused entirely on scrubbing down Max's lower back.

"You know, you _don't_ have to do any of this," Max said, smiling when Chloe looked up at her with a crooked grin, "I am perfectly capable of cleaning myself up."

" _But_ are you capable of washing someone else?" Chloe asked as she removed her hands - _gloriously massage-y hands_ , Max thought - and turned her back to Max, "You're up, Caulfield. Bet your skills are weak in comparison to my hardcore massages."

"…You're daring me to _out-massage_ you?" Max asked with a snort, raising an eyebrow when Chloe looked over her shoulder to give Max a wink and sly grin, "The game is on."

Half an hour later, after several bouts of giggling and laughter, Max and Chloe curled up under fresh sheets in oversized t-shirts. Their clothes now in the washer because Joyce didn't want them to mildew, Max had smirked at the vision of Chloe wearing a shirt that was two sizes larger than she needed. _God, if it's big on her it'd be a tent on me. Wowsers…_ Popping a blue tablet into her mouth, Max reached over for her glass of water and finished it off; noticing Chloe observing her, Max turned around to lie on her side and face Chloe.

"What?"

"…What is that?" Chloe asked, biting her lip with eyes downcast, "I mean, what did you just take? It a sleep med?"

"Hmm, no. It's a prescription I take for anxiety that makes me drowsy if I don't cut the tab in half. 1mg of Klonopin," Max explained, looking at Chloe warily when her friend's eyes widened.

" _Dude_ , you're on Klonopin?" Chloe asked with a Cheshire grin, "Oh, man, you are gonna be hella doped up! High-as-fuck Max will be fun!"

"I'm taking it to _sleep_ , Chloe."

"Yeah, but if I keep you up you'll be stoned as fuck," Chloe said with a wink, sliding her hands under Max's oversized shirt, "I have my ways, Caulfield."

"…Fuck…"

* * *

Max could do nothing but think about the feel of Chloe's hands on her skin, fingers sliding up her abdomen and resting just under her breasts. Attention rivited entirely on the smirking blue-haired girl lying next to her, Max bit her lip when Chloe ran a finger along the underside of one of her breasts. _Holy shit, Chloe, are you wanting me to just drop my pants at this point? I swear, I'm dazed and confused with you just being a straight-up porno._ Biting her lip a little harder to stifle the moan she felt building up within her, Max glared daggers at an amused Chloe.

"I'm _not_ your plaything, Chloe Price," Max warned, sliding her hands up the legs of Chloe's boxers, "And _two_ can play at this game…"

"Ohhh, so it's a _game_ , is it?" Chloe's impish grin only had Max breathing harder as she grunted before hastily grabbing the legs of Chloe's shorts and yanking them down to her knees, " _Holy shit, Max!"_

"Shut up," Max said, bringing a leg over so that she was straddling Chloe. Placing her hands on her still-clothed chest, Max felt for and guided Chloe's hands up to her breasts.

"H-Hella…," Chloe managed to gasp out, eyes widening in the dark as Max continued to guide Chloe's hands into cupping motions, "Max, are you sure you're okay with-?"

"Stop talking," was all Chloe heard, her concern disregarded by Max in the dark of Chloe's bedroom. _Why the hell are you choosing_ now _to be super-concerned?_ Lightning flashed outside and Max froze in place; she could feel Chloe withdraw her hands, but it was like a phantom sensation, an echo from far away.

" _You really are the nosiest student in Blackwell Academy," Mark Jefferson had said to her while she was bound, "I mean, I'm impressed. Don't get me wrong on that, Max. I knew you were bright but I didn't imagine that you were also so…crafty. Is 'crafty' a good word? How about 'ingenious'? Yes, you're the most ingenious girl I've yet to encounter in my studio despite my not intending to use you as a muse…"_

" _P-Please…," Max pleaded, the first round of GHB from the junkyard having worn off, "Please, you don't have to do this…"_

 _A hand on her shoulder, the other hand guiding a syringe. Max pressed her chin down to her neck to try and somehow dodge the needle; Jefferson cradled her chin with his free hand and stared into Max's eyes with a look that chilled Max._ He's looking at me just like he has in class, friendly and warm. Is all of him an act? Does he have any real emotion, or is he just a sociopath…? _Drugs entered her system again, but not at the level as before; still not lucid, Max remained aware despite being sedated to a point of mental disorientation._

" _Puh…P-Please…"_

"Max!" Chloe yelled out, snapping Max out of her flashback. Trying to crawl away, Max smacked her head against something behind her and looked around.

Nestled in a corner of Chloe's room, Max saw she was sitting behind Chloe's TV set with the power strip between her feet. Knees pressed to her chest, Max had been cowering behind the television for an amount of time unknown to her. Aware of where she was, Max could not dispel the feelings and sensations of where she had been. Seeing Chloe reach out toward her, Max batted the hand away and pressed her knees closer to her, staring out into the dimly illuminated room through unruly hair.

"Max, you're here," Chloe said, cautiously sliding a little closer to the girl hiding in her room, " _I_ am right here, with you. Please… Please come back…"

"I…I tried to save you…," Max said in a faint whimper, eyes distant with a thousand-yard stare, "I watched you die so many times, each time harder because I was afraid I'd lose you for good."

Max looked up at Chloe with a blank face and watery eyes, but the stare made Chloe feel as though Max were looking beyond her to something or someone far away.

"You asked me to kill you, once. Not _you_ -you, but another you. You were crippled and dying, and you wanted me to give you a morphine overdose. You pleaded-"

"…Max, stop it…"

"-and you pleaded," Max continued, oblivious to the increasingly pained look on Chloe's face, "You threatened to hate me forever when I said no, told me that I should leave since I never really wanted to be there in the first place. So, I left. Left that timeline, that reality. I found _you_ again, but at the cost of…at the cost of-"

Max's mind was instantly clear a half-second after the feel of Chloe's hand smacking her face, eyes looking up to see her friend looking down at her with a horrified expression. _What…? What happened…? Why am I on the floor, across from the bed?_

"Chloe…?" Max asked, seeing tears running down Chloe's cheeks, "Chloe, what's wrong?"

Max nearly had the air choked out of her when Chloe leaned down and gave her a tackle-like hug. Pinned to the wall, Max patted Chloe's back when she felt the other girl's body shake from sobbing. _Oh no. Oh fuck, what did I say…?_ The therapist in Seattle had warned her about the flashbacks, that she might black out and not remember what she said or did for the brief periods she couldn't recall. Max had wanted to tell Chloe about that as a warning, not have her best friend experience it first before knowing what they were. _No… Chloe, no…_

"I'm sorry," Chloe said, voice muffled as her tear-streaked face was buried in Max's hair, "I'm hella sorry, Max. I-It's my fault, all of it. What you had to do, what you've gone through… It's all on me…"

"What? _No!"_ Max pushed Chloe back so that they were looking each other in the eye, Max's eyes wide with Chloe's sullen, "Chloe, I went through everything I did so that I could have you here with me now. D-Don't you understand? I _need_ you, Chloe, and I'd rather you were here and I'm a fucking mess than you gone. I'd be an even bigger mess!"

At Max's exclamatory statement of needing her, Chloe snorted and a weak smile played at her lips; Max knew the smile was fleeting and pulled Chloe back into her. _How is it I'm messed up and she's crying? This is like that week all over again, her the one suffering and me the one feeling all of it. I don't project my shit on her, though… Do I…?_

Max began to hum the lyrics to "Santa Monica Dream" as she rubbed Chloe's back with one hand while running her other hand's fingers through azure locks of hair. They had been through so much in such a relatively minuscule amount of time, barely having a moment to breathe before getting separated once more. Now, reunited and unwilling to let each other go, the events they'd gone through together reared up once more.

 _I will never abandon you, Chloe…_

"I will always have your back, Chloe," Max murmured into the mess of blue hair on her shoulder, "Always."

* * *

Max Caulfield felt like absolute shit the following morning.

"Thanks, Chloe, for making it so damn hard to sleep," Max grumbled to herself as she splashed water on her face in the Prices' bathroom. Looking up to cringe at the zombie-like face staring back at her, Max leaned down and washed her face again. _Nothing like several gallons of water to make you feel un-shitified. Not even a real word, but who cares? Not enough sleep equals verbal patchwork._

Max blinked the remaining sleep out of her eyes as she dry-swallowed her morning pills; they tasted only slightly less disgusting with water, so it didn't bother her too much. Leaning her head against the mirror, Max closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She didn't want to return to school; Chloe had, in fact, protested against it. _Because of course. Chloe wants me to herself, as usual._ Smiling a little at the thought of skipping out with her best friend, Max absentmindedly put a hand to her chest and remembered what it'd felt like to have Chloe touch her, hands on skin. _It was… Wowser, it was so damn good. It was "hella amazeballs", as Chloe would say. Then I ruined it_.

Max softly bumped her head against the reflective glass pane and let out a harsher sigh, the memory of going from straddling Chloe to hiding in a corner without any memory of in-between irritating and frightening her. The therapist had warned her, had told her to expect moments where she let her guard down completely to possibly cause "episodes" themselves. At the same time, the doctor had encouraged being with someone close just as much as she had warned Max. _Make up my mind for me, already…_

"Max? You still awake in there?" Chloe asked, rapping on the door with her knuckles. Having already finished her morning hygiene, Max lazily pushed herself away from the mirror and opened the door to see Chloe's tired face smiling at her. "Sorry about last night, slamming you with a fuck-ton of questions. I know you need to sleep, but-"

"It's okay, Chloe," Max said, raising a hand to cut her friend off, "I mean, I'm _really_ tired but I know you meant well.

"So," Chloe started to say after Max headed back into Chloe's bedroom to collect her things, "You're taking off."

"I don't necessarily _want_ to go, Chloe," putting a hand to Chloe's cheek, Max gave the blue-haired punk her best smile, "I do, however, _have_ to go. Besides, Victoria bombed my phone this morning with-"

"Lemme see," Chloe snatched the phone out of Max's hand. Despite knowing that Victoria was Max's friend now, Chloe didn't trust the girl.

 **Victoria: Max? You up yet? Bish, school isn't going to wait for you.**

 **Victoria: I kno yesterday was rough but u gotta try. Plz?**

 **Victoria: Kate is too damn nice to me and it's getting me totes flustered. I'm breaking into your stash. This is what happens when you bail on the rest of us ;P**

 **Max: Steal my MJ, will you?**

 **Max: I'll sic Kate on you ;)**

 **Max: "Thou shalt not steal"**

 **Victoria: U R Evil**

 **Max: :D**

 **Victoria: UGH So U coming back or wat**

 **Max: Yes yes I'm coming back. You already high or something?**

 **Victoria: Max, how are you holding up? Did you have your meds on you?**

 **Max: OMFG, Vic, stahp with the mom-ing bullshit. YES I had my meds. I will see you in class, okay? TTYL :3**

"You're not jealous, are you?" Max asked, her tone innocent, as she took her phone back from Chloe, "Dude, she's a friend. Having Victoria as a friend is hella better than having to put up with the darker side of her bullshit, Chloe, so don't antagonize her. Okay?"

Max wouldn't let up with the glare until Chloe reluctantly nodded in acceptance. She needed her friends to at least not snap at each other, especially now that she was going through so much. _Victoria was there for me a lot,_ Max thought as she recalled Seattle and the mess she'd been for weeks, _Sure, it was fucking annoying at times, but Victoria makes a better friend than an enemy. Taylor was right about that, at least._ Sliding her flannel jacket on, Max brought the material to her nose and inhaled the pleasant scent of fabric detergent and softener from having just been cleaned last night. Looking up from her moment of peace, Max smirked at the pained expression of thought on her best friend's face before reaching out to take Chloe's hand.

"You can totally come pick me up when school's out, and we can go to Two Whales for dinner," Max offered, Chloe biting the inside of her cheek while looking down at her feet, "Chloe, what? What is it?"

"…I just hella missed you, okay?" Chloe admitted, taking her hand away from Max's to jam them both into her pockets, "Tch, I'm getting all mushy and I'm not even high. Fucking Max Caulfield, huh?"

"I _do_ seem to have that effect on you," Max added before leaning up on her tip-toes to whisper in Chloe's ear, "You don't seem to mind, though."

Giving Chloe a kiss on the cheek before stepping back down, Max watched the pale skin of her friend's face turn a rosy hue and smiled at the bashful look that had replaced Chloe's usual sardonic expression. _One kiss from me and you melt. Wowser, some things never change._ Leading Chloe downstairs, Max looked around to find they had the house to themselves.

"Joyce already at work?"

"And stepdouche…David…is already on patrol," Chloe said, motioning for Max to take a seat at the dinner table, "I'll whip you up something. Pancakes? Eggs? Me in a whipped cream bikini?"

" _C-Chloe_ …!" Max stammered, her face scarlet at the idea of Chloe in nothing but dessert topping. "Um… Eggs?"

"Your loss, nerd," Chloe teased, pulling out the ingredients needed, "One bacon omelette for SuperMax."

"…You're going to make me a bacon omelette? You?"

"Hella yeah."

"You? Cook eggs? Into an omelette?"

"Dude, I _can_ cook. With Joyce and…and my dad as teachers, I hella got skilled up."

"Oh," Max said, wincing at the distant look on Chloe's face at the mention of her dad, "Sorry."

Max sat at the table with her phone out while Chloe silently prepared their meals, Max getting up only to start a pot of coffee and grab herself some. Using a mug Chloe had made when they were in grade school, Max sipped at the caffeine and sugar with a satisfied grin. The grin widened further when a plate of steaming egg, cheese, and bacon was laid out in front of her with buttered toast.

"Chloe, I formally apologize for ever doubting your ability to crack an egg, you egg," Max said with her nose scrunching up in a delighted smile, " _This_ looks amazing."

"I could hella give Joyce a run for her money at Two Whales."

"You totally could."

When Chloe moved to sit across from Max, Max responded by putting her feet up on the seat. Getting a questioning look from Chloe, Max motioned with a jerk of her head to the chair placed next to her. A rueful grin on her face, Chloe sauntered over and plopped down next to Max before both girls dug into their food. They didn't talk while they ate; Max was too famished to want to speak and Chloe was deep in thought. It wasn't until Max was mopping up the omelette's leftover cheese with a half-eaten slice of toast that Chloe leaned over and gave Max a greasy kiss on the cheek.

"Eww, gross!" Max leaned away from Chloe, wiping her hand at the slick feeling on her face.

" _Gross_? My kiss was _gross_?"

"Not the kiss, Che," Max said, seeing the narrow-eyed look on Chloe's face, "The grease on your lips are gonna have my face smelling like egg and butter if I don't wash up."

"The kiss was okay, then?" The worried tone in Chloe's voice endeared Max to her friend a little further and she scooted her chair over until she was sitting right next to her punk friend.

"Yes, Chloe. I liked the kiss. Hella liked. Wowser-level liked," Max assured Chloe, rolling her eyes, before reaching over to kiss Chloe sofly on the lips, "But next time use a napkin so I don't _smell_ like breakfast. I'd prefer to eat it than be it, okay?"

"Mm-hmm," Chloe nodded before giving Max puppy eyes and tapping at her lips. _Oh, so you're in Shy Chloe mode now, huh? Dog, you are too damn cute sometimes…_

"Kiss?" Max asked, eyebrows raised with a grin on her face. When Chloe simply replied with another tap on her own lips, eyes averted from Max's gaze, the brunette chuckled to herself and cupped Chloe's cheeks with both hands. Softly pulling Chloe halfway, Max met her and their lips connected.

Lips smashed together, Max tilted her head slightly to the left and let out a purring sound as Chloe placed a hand on her hip. Reaching out in return, Max ran a hand around to the nape of Chloe's neck and brushed her fingers into azure locks of hair. Lips parting with both girls panting slightly, Max licked at Chloe's lips and leaned back in to slide her tongue into Chloe's waiting mouth. Their hands interlocked, Chloe pushed her chair back and brought her legs together so Max could straddle her. Their kisses growing more and more passionate, Max let out a moan when Chloe tilted her head down to plant wet, sucking kisses along the crook of her neck.

"Y-You… _unh…_ you giving me hickies, Price?" Max asked, a sly grin on her face when Chloe responded by nibbling a little harder where she'd been kissing. "Hey, Chloe?"

"Mmm?"

"I'm…I'm glad I came back. Not for school, this time, but for you. I-I came back to Arcadia Bay, well, I came back for you," Max's words stopped Chloe in her tracks and the blue-haired girl pulled back to look Max in the eye.

"…For real? You…You c-came back for _me_?" Chloe asked, Max's lips thinning at the sight of tears forming in her friend's eyes.

"Yeah, I pretty much did," Max said with a nod, "I told you it'll take me some time to get where I'd like to be, but you are a large part of that place at the end I have in mind. Chloe…"

"Yeah?"

"…Would you, um, l-like to kinda-maybe be my girlfriend?"

 **To Be Continued...**

 **Author's Note -**

 **Not much to say, really. If you want my _actual_ notes, referencing PTSD symptoms/treatments that coincide with things referenced in this story you'll have to head over to my Tumblr as they are lengthy.**

 **Polarized is done and most of us are still here, so I guess that says we're all hella stubborn ;)**

 **Stay Hella, Cinnamon Rolls!**


End file.
